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4 Lancaster Farming, Friday, December 16, 1955
Lancaster County’s Own Farm Weekly Newspaper
Established November 4, 1955
Published every Friday by
OCTORARO NEWSPAPERS
Quarryville, Pa. Phone 378
Lancaster Phone 4-3047)
Alfred C. Alspach
Ernest J. Neill
C. Wallace Abel ......
Robert G, Campbell ...
Robert J. Wiggins
Subscription Rates: $2,00 Per Year
Three Years $5.00; 5c Per Copy
Application for Second Class Mailing Privileges Pending
THE MAN WHO MISSED CHRISTMAS
Christmas time means many thingi, and too often
the spiritual side is forgotten. This week Lancaster Farm
ing offers as a Christmas editorial the invocation given by
the Rev. Delmar R. Probst, Mount Hope-Methodist and Wes
ley Methodfet pastor, at the annual Christmas banquet of
Farm Women’s Society 15:
Text: Matthew 2; 1-3
During the latter part of the war, an American air
man stationed in England, spent a leave with friends who
lived in the vicinity of Newcastle-on-Tyne.
Hearing a rumor that, the King and Queen were to
visit the city, the airman set off by bus in the hope that he
might catch a glimpse, of the royal couple As the bus en
tered the city, he remembered the letter which the post
man had given him as he left to catch the bus. It was from
home, and so engrossed was he in its contents that he was
quite unaware of the excitement of the people in the bus
as it pulled up opposite the City Hall.
There in full view of all the passengers were Their
Majesties, busy inspecting Civil Defense units. It was only
as the bus was pulling away that the airman realized what
was happening. But it was too late. By the time he had
alighted at the next stop and rushed back to the City Hall,
the inspection was over. The Royal family had driven off.
“To think I was so near the King and Queen and
then did not see them,” he remarked, afterwards in a tone
which can well be imagined.
For centuries men have kept an appointment with
Christmas. Christmas means fellowship, feasting, giving
and receiving, a time of good cheer. To miss Christmas is
a tragedy. Yet, how many of us are like the first man who
missed Christmas! His name was Herod. He could have
gone with the Magi but he stayed at home, and missed
Christmas.
It is possible to miss Christmas today by making it
a secular evert without any religious sigruiicance. The real
mer hng of Christmas and the lelevance of the coming of
-he Saviour is quite overlooked. Why?
For the very saftie' reasons that kept Herod away
from Bethlehem.
I. Herod did not really believe the Scriptures.
His Biblical scholars quoted Micah 5:2, “But thou,
Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the
thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth
unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth
have been_of old, from everlasting,” and Herod sent the
Magi to Bethlehem, but did not go himself.
Perhaps he thought they were on a “wild goose
chase.” He had his doubts about it. Maybe he did not think
a great deal of bis Theologians. He seemed interested
enough, in a casual way, but not sufficiently to go with the
Magi.
How many people are like that today? People hear
the Bible read and listen with interest, as they would to
an essay or a poem, but it never occurs to them that it is
God’s Word to be applied to their own lives.
11. Herod had wrong motives.
Herod missed Christmas because he had wrong mo
tives. He was an able ruler and did much for his country.
Often misunderstood and badly let down by those he loved,
he had become crafty, cruel, suspicious. He did not rejoice
when it was rumored that the Christ might be born. Im
mediately he thought of himself, and how it would affect
his standing on the one hand with Rome, on the other with
people. He had held the kingdom for 30 years, and he was
determined to continue to hold it.
His jealousy caused him to miss Christmas.
We too will miss Christmas if our motives are wrong,
if we think only in terms of material gain.
111. Then Herod was not prepared for it.
Although God was preparing the world for “The
fullness of time,’' and there was an air of expectancy
abroad, Herod does not seem to have been aware of it. Per
haps he had heard and did not treat it seriously. He might
have been preoccupied, so that the announcement of the
Magi took him completely by surprise, and consequently
he missed what might have been the greatest experience
of his life.
- May the commemoration of the birth of our Lord
and Saviour, Jesus Christ this year prove to be the
greatest experience of your life because you have given
him your heart, (your best gift), and He will have
you the assurance of eternal life!
TTpt»<p vw wiU nnt miss ■
‘ / 1I r r' > I
STAFF
. Business Manager
Advertising Director
Circulation Director
Voice Of
Lancaster Farms
and farm friends
(Readers are invited to write
comments on Lancaster Farm*
ing, about current events, or
other topics. Letters should foe
brief, and roust be signeu.
Names will be withheld if re
quested. Editor).
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa- I
have just seen a copy of Lancas
ter Farming-and I congradulate
you oh-the good job done on 1 the
District 4-H Baby fieef- and Lamb
Club show and sale. Sincerely
yours, Edwin U- Rohrbeck, Edi
tor, College, of Agriculture.
Publisher
.. Editor
PARADISE We like your
paper very much. So many little
interesting things to read- We
don’t miss one little item Would
like to subscribe for .one year-
Mrs. J. 'Earl Rice.
LITITZ I was very pleased
to read recent copies of Lancas
ter Fanning and I am glad to
see the farmers of Lancaster
County now have their own
newspaper. Congratulations and
put my name on the charter sub-
scribers’ list now. Daniel
Landis.
LIKES WOMEN’S PAGE
BAREVILLE Please enter
our subscription for one year-
Check endowed. Thanks for pub
lishing pictures of local interest-
I’m sure everyone enjoys see
ing their neighbors’ pictures and
even themselves sometimes. May
be you could print more local
events and activities of the chur
ches in Lancaster County. Keep it
a clean paper and you’ll continue
to receive subscriptions as many
do not like to subscribe to other
papers with all their wordly ac
tivities. Keep it a “homey” pa
per. A Reader.
" (Editor’s note: There are
several hundred churches in
the County, more than 250
minlisters in one association.
Some of these serve more than
one church. Hence any under
taking of church news would
foe impossible. We’re trying to
provide as much agricultural
news as we can, and space is
limited. Thanks for your let
ter. EJN)
CONTINUE AS IS
BAREVILLE Received two
copies of Lancaster Farming.
Hope you will continue, as it is.
Am sending check for $1 00 along
in this letter. A Reader.
NEW SUBSCRIBER
NEW HOLLAND Please en
ter my subscription for one year.
Enjoy paper very much) Rev.
George ‘D. Carnshaw, Jr.
DENVER Please put these
two names on your mailing list
for one year. We sure enjoy your
paper- David E- Reed.
HE’S PAGE ONE NEWS
MILLWAY Find enclosed
one dollar for one year sub
scription to your Lancaster Farm
ing. I have been to visit my
brother-in-law, and he had a box
holder copy, and showed me a
picture of myself feeding my
broilers, in the Dec. 2 issue. I
like the reports of the Lancaster
Poultry Exchange, therefore I
think I should receive your pa
per, not knowing I was enough
in politics to have my picture
on the front page- Leßoy D.
Horst.
{Editor’s Note; Politics? No,
Mr- Horst, it was just a news
worthy _ photograph by our
friend Grant Heilman Tip at ,
Lititx. EJN.)
GORDONVILLE Please put
the above ad in your paper three
times, and enclosed find $l.OO
for the first subscription price.
I think it is a good thing for
about everybody- Ho you expect
to keep it dean of liquor and
cigarettes? M- G- D,
GOOD JOB
INTERESTING
FARMERS OWN
ENJOY LF
GOOD THING
50 Years Ago
This Week on Lancaster Farms j
(This Week In 1905)
By JACK KEICHAHI)
Unemployment in England rea
ched .an all time high in 1905, It
was reported that hundreds of
thousands had nothing to do or
to' eat. American observers in
England noted that regardless of
the depression the game preserves
of the nobility . were being en
larged and vast areas ..of fertile
land enclosed and devoted solely
to the propagation of game for the
sport of the lord and barons.-The
Americans suggested the breaking
up of the enormous reservations
and putting-tile hungry to work
so they could laise food to eat.
Observers pointed out that '‘such
conditions in America would
bring - insurrection”.
In Maine it was reported that
many remnants of fine orchards
existed on old and abandoned
farms m-that state. With the ab
andonment of the farms had come
reforestration on most of the land,
increasing jvi’d game In 1905
many bear were killed in that sec
tion, all found in the old apple
orchards.
Six million bushels of macaroni
wheat grown in this country were
exported to Europe in 1905, the
first wheat of the variety ever
sent out of the United States
A farm newspaper columnist
commented - “Tne fact that a man
works on a farm is no excuse for
his going around looking like a
Background Scripture t Luke 3 21-22
4 42; 5:16. 6:12; 9.18; 28-29; 10:21-22,
Devotional Reading: John 17 13-24
■
Man of Prayer
lesson for December 18, 1955
SOME people will try to tell you
that we can learn nothing from
the fact that Jesus was a man
of prayer. He w'as so different
from us, they say, that we must
no more try to .-imitate him than
to imitate Einstein This is not
the way the New Testament looks
at it, not the way Christian the
ology looks at it. JeSus “had to
her" made like his brethren in ev
very respect,” we
are told m Hebrew
2:17. The church
theologians call
Christ “consub
stantial with us
according to his
manhood,” which
is a way erf say
ing that he is ev
ery bit as human
as we are. With- J’° rem * n
out .sin, to be sure. The only
prayer for forgiveness which he
ever uttered was on behalf of
others, >not himself. If even the
sinless Son of God was a man
of prayer, surely we who are
so imperfect and sinful need
prayer even more; and we can
learn about prater from ham
the Motive of Prayer
One thing stands out: Jesus’
motive or motives for praying
must have been far stronger than
the motive of most of us. Jesus
would go without sleep or rest in
order to pray. He, a man who had
many friends and loved to have
people around him, would with
draw from all human compan
ions, would go far into the hills,
would climb a high mountain.
Just in order to find a place where
he could pray without mterrup;
tion. In short, he took a great
deal of trouble to pray. We take
less trouble, becau— we don’t
feel the strong desire that -he
felt. But why? What was his mo
tive? It Is not so mysterious that
we cannot give it a name, though
it, is too profaund for us to fathom
It to the depths. It was his heart’s
desire for dote- and closer shar-
tramp- The standing of a man
is bound to depend somewhat on
his personal appearance- Other
wise he would have been made
like a monkey”.
Rural citizens were reminded
of the new law concerning the
election of township supervisors
effective with the new year of
1906. Instead of electing super
visors yearly, townships in the
State of Pennsylvania were de
creed by law to elect three super
visors in February one for one
year, one for two years and one
for three years; and annually
thereafter one for three years-
Kherzon oats, imported from
Russia to Nebraska, were re
pprted giving an increased yield
of 15 bushels per acre over other
varieties in tfaar state-
.. At Lancaster Henry Esch
bach, aged 5, son of Mr. and Mrs.
Frederick Eschrach, set himself
on fire. The boy had been play
ing with matches at a rabbit pen
and .set the straw on fire- His
sergams attracted the attention
of John W- Brucker, who also
suffered severe burns in the
rescue of the child.
NO TROUBLE AT ALL.
Waynesburg Pa. Lawrence
Mylan entered the hospital her©
complaining of abdominal pains.
The pains were traced to a ther
mometer that' bad been lodged in
Mylan’s small intestines for 33
years. <
heart and life of the heavenly
Father. Jesus shows no sign ot
needing to “get right” with God.
He was in full harmony to hi*
life’s end. But his prayers were
an expression of that harmony.
The piano tuner makes the string*
of the instrument ring, true; bu>
the musician then brings out the
beauty that is there when all i«
in tune.
The Manner of Prayer
Ur. W. 15. Chamberlain has writ
ten' a book for plain Christian*
called “The Manner of Prayer,’*
based on the Lord’s Prayer. This
is no place to borrow many pages
from that fine book. Yet a word
should be said about the manner
of Jesus’ prayer in general We
know that he used to attend the
synagogue meetings, and wa
know that in those meetings for
mal (what we would call “print
ed”) prayers were used, in which
no doubt Jesus would join. But
we hear a great deal more about
his private prayers, and we can
be pretty sure that for these oc
casions he never took a prayer
book with him. His prayers were
personal, individual,, they were
free, and many of them were fully
private, strictly between himself
and His Father. This much is
clear for our own prayer-prac
tice: whatever formal pray era
we may use in church, or who
ever may be praying there for
us (and with us, if “leading’ in,
prayer means anything), this can
be no substitute for personal, pri
vate prayer. We must never be
tied down to any formula, as ill
God were something like a bu
reaucrat who would not consider
a communication not in proper
form! God wants to know most
of all not how we say it but how
much we mean it.
The Matter of Prayer
What things is it right to pray
for? We can be sure of this much
at least: It is always right to
pray for the kind of thing which
is in harmony with the “Lord’s
Prayer.” (Incidentally, the fact
that this prayer appears m mora|
than one form in the gospelaj
shows that it can hardly be right
to insist on one set form or
words.) Things not mentioned in
that prayer, perhaps yes; but
things out of line with it, no Let
the reader consider which of these
objects of prayer are in line with
the Lord’s prayer: A promotion
in one’s job? Greater spiritual
strength? The cure of an afflicted
loved one? Foreign missions? An
unborn child? The President at
the United States? The elimination
of a rival in love or business’
tBuoS db outline* eopyrlfbted by Ua
DlrUlon of Chrlttun
ttni ( | CoanoU of tbo Charche* of Cbrl*»
Id tbo 1). S. A. KolvmoO by tJommaotty
, tiX.